Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Forrest Griffin Confirmed for “UFC: Rio”

Less than 48 hours after announcing Anderson Silva would defend his UFC middleweight title against Yushin Okami in the Octagon’s long awaited return to Brazil, it has been confirmed Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will rematch Forrest Griffin at “UFC: Rio,” as well.

UFC president Dana White verified the shootout with MMAFighting on Friday.

Griffin owns a 18-6 professional record, with 10 of his wins coming via finish. “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner is perfect through his last two contests and was most recently seen taking a unanimous decision win over Rich Franklin at UFC 126.

Shogun, on the other hand, was outgunned for his light heavyweight title by skyrocketing superstar Jon Jones at UFC 128. The slugger has won three of his last five fights.

Griffin rudely welcomed Shogun to the Octagon way back in September 2007. Although he was a significant underdog entering the 205-pound affair, Griffin managed to submit the jiu jitsu specialist with a rear-naked choke in the 3rdRound of their matchup.

The August 27th fiesta takes place inside the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.

Here are the athletes expected to participate in the pay-per-view broadcast: